Nightclubs and Memories
by DinoDina
Summary: Pansy and Ginny enjoy a night off from work. Oneshot written for QLFC.


**Written for QLFC Round #8  
** **Team:** Wigtown Wanderers  
 **Position:** Beater 2  
 **Prompt:** The Mod Team, The Lady Arturia: Pansy became an editor later in life and she and Ginny worked together rather often. **  
** **Additional Prompts:** 6\. (location) nightclub, 8. (restriction) no Hogwarts staff is to be mentioned, 15. (object) suitcase  
 **Words:** 1055

 **Thanks to Aelys and Kage for betaing!**

Pansy walked into the crowded nightclub not without some trepidation. She gripped the small work suitcase tightly in her hand, lest it be knocked away by some drunk Muggle. It was the first time she'd been to this part of the Muggle world, and she was never comfortable in new situations. Ignoring the blasting music and blinding neon lights, she looked around, spotting Ginny at the last second sitting alone at a table in the corner. She jostled through the crowd and sat down in the empty seat.

"Long day?" Ginny asked sympathetically, probably noting Pansy's minimal makeup, tired eyes, and limp hair.

Pansy half-laughed and shrugged. "Yeah, you could say that."

Ginny grinned. "Yeah, it's been completely hectic this week."

Pansy put her suitcase next to her chair, slumped backwards, and took a long drink. "The interns are fine with deadlines, but the seasoned reporters? Ugh—I swear they get worse every day!"

"I know what you mean." Ginny nodded. "I have to chase them down to get their stories half the time. No one told me it was more work to be an editor than a journalist!"

"That's what you get for quitting your professional Quidditch career. Now, instead of being written about, you get to read what other people write about _other_ Quidditch players." Pansy sighed. "At least the most violent things you get are anonymous death threats against the players."

"You're oddly nonchalant about it."

"Yeah, because I have to deal with death threats to my journalists, which is my direct responsibility." Pansy liked her job, she really did—it had taken quite a while to rise through the ranks to become chief editor of the Daily Prophet, but it had been worth it—even with these few annoyances. "But no matter. I've got tomorrow's issue all squared away, so here's to a quiet evening in a new Muggle nightclub."

She clicked her glass against Ginny's.

"So," Ginny said after a minute. "You like my location?"

"Yeah." Pansy looked around. "Not the best, a bit too loud for my taste, but not bad."

"I guess you just have to find a better one next week."

Pansy nodded, accepting the challenge. After their first time working together and overcoming old issues—that they didn't really mention anymore because so much time had passed—they'd made it a tradition to celebrate weekly at a new Muggle pub or nightclub.

It had been Ginny's choice today, so here they were. Pansy had received an owl about the nightclub earlier; she could have declined, but it was rather exciting to explore the Muggle world. Their first time out together had been the start of a tradition, and who was Pansy to argue with that?

" _No, Weasley!" Pansy yelled as Ginny pointed excitedly at a Muggle establishment of some sort. "We need to get back to Prophet Headquarters and give them the interview! This isn't how we work; we can't just take a break because we see some sort of..."_

" _Nightclub."_

" _Yes, nightclub—that you want to visit!"_

" _That's not why I'm going in!" Ginny shouted as she dragged Pansy in by the sleeve of her Muggle cardigan. "You saw how reluctant Fudge was to give the interview. I think he might have sent someone after us. I'm not sure, but I think I saw someone following us."_

" _Right." Pansy squared her shoulders and stopped protesting, drawing herself up beside Ginny. "Do you have any Muggle money? We have to pay to get in."_

" _Yeah, I took some just in case." Ginny took a Muggle wallet out of her pocket. "Remind me to teach you Muggle currency when we get back."_

" _I know Muggle currency," Pansy bit back. "But Fudge still lives in the Wizarding world. I didn't expect to have to run out of his house with his bodyguards chasing us after we asked an 'insensitive' question. I didn't expect having to run into the Muggle world to hide from them!"_

" _That's fair."_

 _Ginny smiled sweetly at the bouncer, who looked them both over. Pansy didn't smile back at him._

" _So, what?" she asked when they were safely in the back of the club, seated at a table next to a door marked 'EXIT'. "We just wait and hope we didn't get followed in? Do you at least still have the notebook?"_

 _Ginny patted the inside pocket of her jacket. "Sealed with magic. Fudge's interview will be on the editor's table in the morning."_

" _Good."_

 _Pansy settled uneasily in her seat. She hoped no one who looked at them would be able to tell how on-edge she was in such an unfamiliar situation; Ginny, meanwhile, looked calm and collected._

Ginny looked as calm as ever, sipping at her drink and looking amicably at Pansy as they talked over the week's work. It was nothing as exciting as their first assignment together had been—interviewing Fudge about You-Know-Who's reappearance so many years ago, only to be chased by one of his bodyguards, then hiding in a Muggle nightclub for four hours and getting back to the Daily Prophet Headquarters at daybreak—but she enjoyed her work.

Pansy liked writing, liked telling people what to do, and over the past few years had grown to enjoy working with Ginny. Their hostile relationship of the past had given way to a working friendship—not without its ups and downs, of course, but such were friendships—Pansy looked forward to the Friday nights that marked the anniversary of them seeing each other in a new light.

She remembered the smiles they'd exchanged when they'd left the club all those years ago.

" _Thanks for trusting me," Ginny said as they began walking away from the club, now sans stalker._

 _Pansy cleared her throat awkwardly. "Well… it… er… nice job noticing that we were being followed. Thanks for not losing your head. It was a good plan—he might have tracked us if we'd Apparated."_

" _We made a cool team," Ginny said with a smile. "Thanks for letting me tag along, I know it's only my first time interviewing."_

" _Don't worry about it."_

It hadn't exactly been an evening of teamwork, but it had been an evening of trust—a trust that had continued to develop and had now led them to yet another Muggle nightclub, this time, just for fun.


End file.
